If Ethan Was Smarter
by Arglefumph
Summary: If Ethan was smarter, he would have been able to save his parents by the end of chapter two of the game.
1. Ethan's Birthday

**Author's Note: **Here's my attempt at a Time Hollow story. Let's call it "what Time Hollow would be like if Ethan was smarter". Because, let's face it, if Ethan was smarter and more focused, he could have saved his parents by the end of Chapter Two. And if he was smarter, he might have noticed that certain girls like him.

* * *

><p>Ethan Kairos was in his room, petting his cat Sox and flipping through a watch catalogue.<p>

Ethan was a pretty average high school student, except for the fact that he was the only kid in school to own multiple watch catalogues. Ethan had a good excuse for reading his watch catalogue today, though. Tomorrow was his birthday, and he wanted to take another look at the watch he asked his parents to get.

"It's a good thing I showed this catalogue to my parents ten weeks ago," Ethan said to himself. "How ridiculous would it have been if I waited until tonight to tell them? You can't get something from a catalogue overnight."

Sox meowed.

Ethan laughed. "Yeah, that'd be as ridiculous as trying to give you a bath, wouldn't it?" he said. "Everyone knows cats hate water."

Sox meowed again.

"Eeeeethan! Time for dinner!" Ethan's mother called.

"I'll be right down!" Ethan said, jumping off of his bed and going down the stairs to the kitchen

* * *

><p><em>And now, an exciting dinner at the Kairos house...<em>

Ethan took a sip of Mom's tea. It was even weaker than usual, and that was saying something.

"Can you pass the soy sauce?" Ethan's father asked.

"Sure," Ethan said. He passed the soy sauce to his father.

"Mom, can you pass the salt shaker?" Ethan asked.

"Sure," Ethan's mother said. She passed the salt to Ethan.

Ethan sighed from sheer boredom. Sometimes, the dinner conversation was so bland that it made Mom's food seem exciting in comparison. Dad rarely, if ever, said anything; he always seemed to be lost in a world of his own.

Eventually, the food was finished, and Ethan was allowed to leave.

* * *

><p>As Ethan returned to his room, he was surprised to see Sox run in through the open window. It almost looked like Sox was running away from something.<p>

"Is someone out there?" Ethan asked. He leaned out the window, and he noticed a shadowy figure hiding under a streetlamp. The person wasn't doing anything besides standing still, watching Ethan's house.

"Hey!" Ethan shouted. "Hey, you!"

The shadowy figure started, then ran away at top speed.

"That was...weird," Ethan said to himself. "Why would—hey!"

A car came down the block and parked in front of Ethan's house. He recognized it immediately. That was Uncle Derek's car.

"Looks like your owner is here," Ethan said to Sox. "Maybe he's come to wish me an early happy birthday."

"Ethan! Tea's ready!" Mom called from downstairs.

_Tea?_ Ethan wondered. _We just had tea with dinner! And it was pretty weak tea, too!_

"Coming!" Ethan said.

* * *

><p>Ethan halted at the top of the stairs, as he heard two arguing voices from downstairs.<p>

"Come on, I only need a little!" a voice said. "Just a little bit!"

"I can't lend you anything. Try to understand, Derek," a second voice said.

_Sounds like Dad and Uncle Derek are arguing about money again..._ Ethan thought. Dad and Uncle Derek were brothers, but you'd never know that Dad was only one year older than Derek. Dad looked about fifteen years older that Derek.

"Don't be so stingy! I need the money!" Uncle Derek said.

Deciding to break up the argument, Ethan stepped down the stairs. "Hey, Uncle Derek," Ethan said.

"Hey, Ethan," Derek said. "Try to talk some sense into your old man, will you?"

"Well, um..." Ethan said. "Don't you still owe Dad $500 from last month?"

"That doesn't matter," Derek said. "I need another 500. 600, if possible."

"Ethan's right," Dad said. "I've given you money for the past three months in a row, and you haven't paid me back a cent. I'm not giving you any more money, and that's final."

Meanwhile, Ethan's mother was doing nothing. She just sat at the kitchen table, sipping her weak tea.

"Fine!" Derek said. "I see how it is. You care more about money than your own brother. Some family _you_ are."

"Derek, do you want some tea?" Mom asked. As usual, her sense of timing was way off, and Uncle Derek ignored her.

"You'll regret this..." Uncle Derek promised, before he ran out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

"Well, _that_ was unpleasant," Ethan said.

"He needs to grow up," Dad said. "He can't expect me to cover all of his debts."

"Hey, speaking of growing up," Ethan said. "It's my birthday tomorrow."

"That's right," Mom said, her eyes lighting up. "Isn't it time to tell Ethan about...that?"

"Not yet," Dad said.

"Huh?" Ethan asked. "Tell me about what?"

"Don't worry about it," Dad said. "We'll tell you tomorrow, when you turn 17."

"Is it a surprise birthday present?" Ethan asked.

"Something like that," Dad said. "You'll find out tomorrow."

* * *

><p><em>Tomorrow<em>

That night, Ethan had a horrible nightmare about his parents being trapped in a burning building. He woke up with a scream and panted for a few seconds, before he realized that it was all just a dream.

"Yikes, I need a towel," Ethan said. "I'm dripping with sweat."

Ethan threw the blankets aside and got out of bed. He instantly froze. The room he was in...this was not his room.

Sure, it resembled his room. The bed and desk were in the right place. But the blankets on the bed were different. The carpet had disappeared. And there was...a wormhole floating right next to his bed?

"W...weird," Ethan said, looking at the wormhole. He examined it from both sides. It was a purple hole, floating in the middle of the air. The hole was a perfect circle, about three feet in diameter. The left side of the circle was about a half inch away from the right side.

Ethan wasn't dumb enough to try to touch the wormhole. What if it sucked him in or something like that?

"Uh...Mom? Dad? You need to see this!" Ethan said. "I got a birthday present from out of _Star Trek_!"

There was no response. Ethan left his room. "Mom? Dad?" he asked.

"What's going on, Ethan?" a voice asked.

It took Ethan a second to place the voice. "Uncle Derek?" he asked.

Uncle Derek appeared in the hallway. "Yeah?" he said. "What is it?"

Ethan was more than slightly surprised to see his uncle again, after Uncle Derek stormed out of the house the night before. "Um, hey," Ethan said. "I didn't expect to see you again so soon. Did you come to talk to Dad?"

"What?" Derek asked. "Are you still half-asleep, kiddo? And what's with all the sweat?"

"I had a nightmare," Ethan said. "But seriously, where are my parents? I need to talk to them about something."

"Now I _know_ you're still dreaming," Derek said. "You think I'd be here if I knew where your parents are?"

"But...they were here last night..." Ethan said.

"I'm going downstairs to have breakfast," Uncle Derek said. "Why don't you take a shower and wake up before joining me?"

"...Okay?" Ethan said, as his uncle pushed past him and down the stairs.

* * *

><p>Ethan changed his clothes and cleaned up, but he still as confused as ever. Overnight, his room had changed. Uncle Derek was now living in his house, and his parents were...well, wherever they were, it wasn't here.<p>

There was also that wormhole, still floating in midair near his bed. Ethan balled up a sheet of notebook paper and tossed it at the wormhole. The paper went into it and disappeared completely, instead of going through it.

_Yep, I'm definitely not touching that thing_, Ethan decided.

He left his room and went downstairs, hoping that his parents would be there, like they normally were. Unfortunately, no one was there but Uncle Derek, who was reading a newspaper.

"Hey, you awake now?" Uncle Derek asked.

"Uh huh," Ethan said. "But I'm—"

"Good," Uncle Derek interrupted, putting his newspaper down. "Then I'm going out. You're on dish duty, okay?"

Before Ethan could say anything, Uncle Derek left. Ethan picked up a piece of toast and started chewing on it, thinking.

_Something weird is going on here,_ Ethan decided. _It's like I've travelled into some sort of parallel universe._

Ethan got up and looked around. Some of the kitchen appliances were different. There was a locked door in an area which used to be just a solid wall. And when Ethan went upstairs and looked in his parents' room, he found that it had been completely changed. The brief inspection revealed that the room did not belong to a man and a woman. Only one man—probably Uncle Derek—was living there.

_Do I live with Uncle Derek?_ Ethan wondered. All signs pointed to this conclusion, but it made no sense. Ethan lived with his parents only a few hours ago. Someone couldn't have remodeled the entire house in that time...right?

_I bet that wormhole thing has something to do with this,_ Ethan figured, before cleaning up the dishes and putting them away.

* * *

><p>Ethan ended up going to school that day. He didn't exactly know why. It just felt like the right thing to do. Maybe after a normal day of school, he would return home to find everything just the way it was supposed to be.<p>

School _was_ normal. Ethan's classes were all the same. There weren't any missing students. The teachers hadn't changed. Why not? Why would Ethan's home change, but not his school?

As Ethan walked across the courtyard, he overheard two male students talking about a clock. Apparently, one of them found it in the dumpster. It was a pretty nice clock, too, so it didn't make sense for someone to throw it out.

"Ethaaaan!" a female voice called.

Ethan started. "Who me?" he asked.

Two girls came running up to him. One was a sporty girl with short brown hair and an exuberant personality. The other girl had green hair and glasses, and she seemed more reserved.

"Duh! Who else?" the brown-haired girl asked. "Come on, Emily. What do you say?"

"Um, er...hello, Ethan..." Emily said.

Ethan shook his head. "Sorry, I'm a little out of it today," he said. "You're...Ashley, Vin's sister," he said to the brown-haired girl. Turning to the other girl, he asked, "But who are you?"

The girl looked shocked and embarrassed. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said. "I'm Emily. Emily Niner."

"No need to apologize," Ethan said. "It's nice to meet you. You must be Ashley's friend."

"Yep, we're besties," Ashley said. "And we've got something for you."

"You do?" Ethan asked. That seemed slightly odd. Ethan didn't talk to Ashley that often. Why would she have something for him?

"Of course!" Ashley said. "We wouldn't forget your big day! Emily, where is it?"

Emily fumbled around in her backpack. "Oh, um...it's...it's here, Ethan."

She pulled out an antique clock and held it up. Ethan stared at it for a second.

"It would mean a lot to her if you just accepted it, you know!" Ashley said.

"Ashley, cut it out!" Emily said, turning red.

Ethan took the clock from Emily. "Um...thanks," he said. "Why did you get me a clock?"

Ashley's face fell. "You don't like it?"

"It's fine, I guess," Ethan said, putting it away in his backpack. "But why'd you get it?"

"I...I thought it would be a nice birthday present..." Emily said. "If you don't like it..."

"Oh my gosh!" Ethan said. "That's right! It's my birthday today! I completely forgot about that!"

"You forgot it was your birthday?" Ashley asked.

Ethan shook his head. He couldn't believe he forgot about his birthday, just because of all the weird things that happened that morning.

"Wow, now I feel stupid," Ethan said. "Thanks a lot, you two! This is my first birthday present of the day!"

"So you like it?" Ashley asked. "Emily picked it out special for you!"

"Ash-LEY..." Emily said.

"Yeah, this is great!" Ethan said. "It's really nice of you to get it for me! I—"

"Yo," a male voice said.

"Oh, shoot, it's my brother!" Ashley whispered. "Let's go, quick! Bye, Ethan!"

"G-goodbye, Ethan," Emily said. "Happy birthday..."

"See you!" Ethan waved at the two girls as Ashley led Emily away. The two of them immediately started talking to each other, but Ethan didn't get a chance to hear what they were saying, as his three best friends showed up.

"What are those two up to?" Vin asked. "Whispering among themselves..."

Ethan looked at his three best friends: Ben, Vin and Morris. Morris was the studier, Vin was the basketball star, and Ben was the one who liked girls so much that he could never get a date. They all looked the same as normal.

"They gave me a birthday present," Ethan said.

"Who, Ashley?" Vin asked. "Gah, nasty! Throw it away!"

"Why would I? She went through all the trouble of buying it..." Ethan said. The clock probably cost about fifty dollars, too.

"So what's up, Ethan?" Ben asked. "Having a good birthday so far?"

"Sure," Ethan said. "Hey, do you guys know what happened to my parents?"

Ben looked surprised. "Woah, way to change the subject there," he said. "Why, has something happened?"

"No, I'm just...wondering," Ethan said. "What do you know about my parents?"

His friends didn't know much. They had vague memories of Ethan's parents, but they said the two of them went missing, about twelve years ago.

_So...my parents went missing twelve years ago,_ Ethan thought. _That's why I live with my Uncle Derek. Besides for that, it seems like everything else in this world is the same._

At this point, Ethan had pretty much decided that he was in an alternate universe. Overnight, he had been transported to a different world, where his parents were gone. Did that mean the Ethan from this universe was in the world Ethan was from?

Ethan's friends wanted to take him out to Chronos to celebrate his birthday, but he managed to get out of it. He wanted to go home and figure out this strange situation.

* * *

><p>The wormhole was still in Ethan's room. Ethan guessed that he must have travelled through this wormhole, in order to reach this new reality.<p>

_But how?_ Ethan wondered. _Did I somehow crawl through the wormhole, while I was asleep? And why would a wormhole just happen to appear right next to my bed, anyway?_

"Meow," Sox said.

Ethan looked down at his cat. There was something attached to Sox's collar. He probably would have noticed it earlier, if all those weird things hadn't happened.

Ethan picked Sox up, then removed the items from the collar. They were a green pen and a letter. The letter was written in his own handwriting.

_Dear Ethan,_

_Hi, it's me. Or should I say you? I'm...another Ethan._

_By now, you've realized that you're in an alternate universe, where Mom and Dad are missing. Don't worry; you'll be able to find them again._

_First, though, you'll need this pen that I attached to Sox. It's the Hollow Pen. This is a device that can open and close Time Holes. Test it out by tapping the Time Hole here to close it. Once you've confirmed a flashback, you can use the Hollow Pen to open a Time Hole._

_I know what I wrote probably makes no sense, but don't worry. You'll figure it out soon. Make sure to use the Hollow Pen to find the clock at the dumpster, at 10:00 AM. Good luck finding our parents!_

_-Ethan_

To say Ethan was confused would be putting it mildly. He reread the letter several times, but it didn't make any more sense to him. Hollow Pen? Time Holes? A clock at the dumpster?

Eventually, Ethan picked up the pen and examined it from every angle. It didn't _feel_ hollow to him. Tentatively, he put the pen close to the purple wormhole and tapped it.

"WOAH!" Ethan shouted, as the hole immediately closed itself. In an instant, three images quickly flashed through his mind.

1. A burning building, with someone inside.  
>2. Uncle Derek, reading a newspaper.<br>3. A clock in a dumpster.

_Those must be those flashback things mentioned in the letter..._ Ethan thought. He analyzed them more carefully.

The burning building looked like it was taken directly from Ethan's nightmare that morning. Mom and Dad were trapped inside the building, with fire on all sides. Dad looked much younger than normal, indicating that this took place twelve years ago, right when everyone said Ethan's parents disappeared.

_They didn't disappear,_ Ethan thought. _They must have died in the fire. For some reason, in this alternate universe, my parents were killed in a fire._

This logically lead to the second flashback, of Uncle Derek reading a newspaper in the kitchen. Ethan lived with Uncle Derek in this universe.

But the third flashback, the one of a clock in a dumpster...that didn't make sense. It was mentioned in the letter from the other Ethan, but it still didn't make sense.

"Guess I'm off to the school dumpster," Ethan said to himself. He threw on a jacket and went downstairs.

Uncle Derek was there, drinking coffee.

"Where do you think you're going, kid?" Uncle Derek asked.

"I'm going to school," Ethan said. "I accidentally left something outside, so I need to go back and get it."

"Well, hurry up," Uncle Derek said. "Make sure to get back here before it gets dark."

Ethan smiled and ran out the door before Uncle Derek could stop him.

_He didn't even mention my birthday..._ Ethan thought. _Alternate Uncle Derek is just as big of a jerk as normal Uncle Derek._

As Ethan returned to school, he remembered that he overheard two students that day, talking about a clock in the dumpster. That must have been the clock he was trying to find.

Ethan went to the school dumpster. It was the same as in his flashback, except now it was empty. The note said something about ten o'clock that morning, but that was about seven hours ago.

Ethan returned to the flashback. Now, he knew when and where the flashback was from; it was a picture of this area, seven hours ago. With that information, Ethan was able to _confirm_ the flashback. Everything snapped into place, and the Hollow Pen started glowing.

_This is weird, but it feels like the right thing to do,_ Ethan thought. He reread the note from his other self. It said he could open a Time Hole, after confirming a flashback. Ethan took the Hollow Pen and drew a circle in the air.

The circle he drew became a wormhole, just like the one from his bedroom. Only, it wasn't a wormhole. It was a Time Hole.

The scenery around Ethan turned black and white, almost as if time was temporarily paused. Through the Time Hole, he could see the dumpster as it was, seven hours ago. Ethan had someone opened a hole which led to the past.

Ethan could see the clock in the dumpster in the past. He reached his hand in the Time Hole and pulled out the clock. Taped to the clock was a letter from the other Ethan.

_Dear Ethan,_

_If you're reading this, you did it! You opened a Time Hole to one of your flashbacks. You can use Time Holes to change reality. You'll see what I mean in just a sec—once you close this Hole, things are going to shift into a different universe, one where you find the clock at 10:00 AM._

_In case you haven't guessed it by now, the Hollow Pen is the birthday gift Mom and Dad were talking about last night._

_You've got a flashback of Mom and Dad inside a burning building, right? Figure out a way to open up a Time Hole to that flashback. Then, save them from being killed. It'll be a little bit harder than that, but you can do it. At least, I was able to do. And you're me, so that means you can do it._

_This is going to be my last letter. I'm sorry I can't explain things to you in more detail, but if I did, that might change reality too much and ruin everything. _

_-Ethan_

_P.S. Happy birthday! I hope you like clocks. _

"Gee, thanks, Alternate Me," Ethan said. He sighed and tapped the Time Hole to make it disappear. Time unfroze, and Ethan got some new flashbacks.

The first was a flashback of the dumpster from ten hours ago. This time, there wasn't a clock in the dumpster, because Ethan had taken it.

The second flashback was Ethan, overhearing the two boys talking. Since the clock was gone, the one boy hadn't found it in the dumpster.

Needless to say, Ethan had a lot to think about as he went back home. Alternate universes. A pen that opened holes in time. Could Ethan really use the Hollow Pen to save his parents from dying twelve years ago? How did his parents end up in that situation, anyway?

Ethan put the clock from his other self on the desk, right next to the clock from Emily and Ashley. For a long time, he just sat in his room and thought.

"Ethan, dinner!" Uncle Derek called.

"I'll be right down!" Ethan said, getting up off of the bed.

_I guess, for now, I'm stuck here in this alternate universe,_ Ethan decided. _At least, until I can save my parents. That should be simple enough, I guess. I just have to confirm the flashback of them dying. But how am I going to confirm that flashback, if no one knows the details of how my parents were killed?_

Ethan headed out the door and downstairs, hoping to get more information from Uncle Derek.


	2. Ashley Disappears

Uncle Derek either didn't know how Ethan's parents died, or he refused to talk about it. Ethan would have to figure out another way to get more information.

He considered going to the police department, but before he knew it, a whole day had passed, and he had to go to school. Ethan had trouble focusing on his classes that day. Being sent to a new reality will do that to you.

"Eeeeethan!" a female voice called.

Ethan snapped out of his thoughts again and looked up to see Ashley and Emily.

"Hi girls," Ethan said. "Fancy seeing you again today."

"Hey, Ethan. How'd you like your present?" Ashley asked.

"Oh, it was great," Ethan said. "I put it right up in my room and everything."

"You mean it?" Ashley asked.

"I'm glad you like it..." Emily said, putting her hands to the side of her head and blushing.

"And Emily was the one who picked it out," Ashley said.

Vin suddenly appeared. "Hey, girls," he said. "What are you two doing here?"

"Oh, shut up!" Ashley said. "Like you care!"

Ashley and Vin apparently did not have a very loving brother-and-sister relationship.

"We were talking about my present," Ethan said, trying to be a peacemaker.

"Ethan! Shhh!" Ashley said.

"Oh, yeah, that thing," Vin said. "I can't believe they saved up their money to buy a present for the likes of you."

"It's our money! We can spend it however we want to!" Ashley said.

"Yeah, at least they _got_ me a present," Ethan said. "You didn't get me anything."

"You should have spent your money on a new cell phone," Vin said. "Seeing as you lost yours the other day."

"You still haven't found your cell phone?" Emily asked.

"Yeah, um, not yet," Ashley said. "Not that you need to keep bugging me about it, Vin."

"I'm just saying you're irresponsible, Ash," Vin said.

"Mind your own business!" Ashley said.

"How could you lose an eyesore of a phone like that, anyway?" Vin asked. "It's bright pink and has this ugly pig hanging off of it!"

"It's not a pig, it's a dog!" Ashley said. "D – O – G DOG! Are you blind _and_ stupid?"

Ashley and Vin kept on arguing with each other, completely oblivious to the rest of the world. Ethan took a step towards Emily, away from the fighting siblings.

"Do they always fight like this?" Ethan asked Emily.

"Yeah...sometimes," Emily said. "It's—"

_It was at that second that reality changed._

Everyone except Ethan disappeared, and flashbacks quickly went through his head.

1. A classroom.  
>2. The school lockers.<br>3. Two girls fighting.

Ethan shook his head, trying to focus. Where did those flashbacks come from? And where did everyone go?

"Ethaaan!" a voice called. It was Ethan's friend Ben, who looked upset.

"Hey, Ben," Ethan said. "Is something wrong?"

"What are you doing, just standing there?" Ben asked. "You're supposed to be helping with the search!"

"The...search?" Ethan asked. "Why, what did you lose?"

"This isn't a time for jokes!" Ben said. "We have to find Ashley! She's been missing for two days!"

"Wh-wh-wh-_what?_" Ethan asked.

"They've filled out a missing persons report for her and everything," Ben said. "But just because the police are looking, it doesn't mean we can't look for her, too! You check inside the school with Morris—I'll look around the outside!"

"Roger," Ethan said, nodding. Ben nodded back, then ran away.

_Ashley has disappeared..._ Ethan thought. _Just like my parents. Somehow, I've been sent to an alternate universe where Ashley has gone missing..._

Ethan decided to check his flashbacks, for more information. Sure enough, two of the flashbacks were about Ashley. One was Ashley at her locker, while a boy stood nearby. An envelope was on the ground at Ashley's feet, but she didn't seem to notice it.

The second flashback was of Ashley and Emily, outside Chronos. The two of them were fighting with each other, and it looked like Emily pushed Ashley over, into the hedge.

_So, the two best friends had an argument, and shortly afterwards, one of them went missing,_ Ethan thought. _Interesting._

Ethan thought for a second about what he could do, then shrugged. The situation with Ashley was disturbing, true. But Ethan had bigger problems to worry about. Besides, once he saved his parents, this reality where Ashley disappeared would be completely erased.

Ethan went back into the building, intending to find Morris. Morris could continue the search for Ashley, while Ethan went to the library to learn more about his parents' disappearance. While going through the hallway towards homeroom, Ethan suddenly froze.

He was standing in the hallway from his flashback, the one with Ashley in it. Ethan took a quick look at the nameplates on the lockers, and sure enough, there was a locker with Ashley's name on it.

There was a boy nearby, opening one of the lockers. Ethan immediately recognized him as the boy, standing in the background of the flashback.

Ethan suddenly turned on the boy and confronted him. "You!" he said. "Do you know Ashley Threet?"

"Woah," the boy said, stepping backwards. "What's your problem, man?"

"Ashley, the girl who's missing," Ethan said. "Do you know her?"

"Um...not really," the boy said. "She's in my class, but we don't talk to each other."

"When did you last see her?" Ethan asked.

"Gee, I dunno," the boy said. "It's not like I keep tabs on her or anything."

"Let me jog your memory," Ethan said. "You were walking down the hallway here, and Ashley was getting something from her locker right here. There was a yellow envelope on the ground."

The boy thought for a second, then his eyes widened. "Oh, yeah!" he said. "I remember that. That was two days ago. Are you saying that girl was the missing girl?"

"Maybe," Ethan said. "Tell me what happened."

"Well, I was walking down the hallway, and there was this girl getting something from her locker. Out of nowhere, this other girl with purple hair comes running down the hallway. She smashed into the girl at the locker. She bumped into me, too. I don't know why she was in such a hurry."

"What did the girl at the locker do?" Ethan asked.

"She dropped some envelope, but she didn't seem to notice," the boy said. "She walked away in a huff."

"What did _you_ do?" Ethan asked.

"Uh, nothing," the boy said. "I just went to my locker, then left. I'm pretty sure the envelope was still on the ground then."

"So Ashley lost an envelope, right before she went missing," Ethan summarized. "Is that what you're saying?"

"Yeah, I guess so," the boy said. "Do you think the envelope has something to do with her disappearance? Maybe I should have picked it up."

"Maybe," Ethan said. "I'd sure like to know what was in that envelope... Do you know the other girl? The one with purple hair?"

"Sorry, but no," the boy said. "That's all I know."

"And this was two days ago, right before Ashley disappeared?" Ethan confirmed.

"Yeah, around 3:00," the boy said.

Ethan clapped the boy on the shoulder. "You should probably tell this to the authorities," he said. "It could be important."

"Good idea," the boy said. "Only..."

"What?" Ethan asked.

"You weren't there," the boy said. "How did you know what happened at the lockers?"

"That's not important," Ethan said. "See ya."

Ethan left before the boy could ask too many questions about his flashbacks.

* * *

><p>Ethan kept going to his original destination, Morris' classroom. Ethan cast a quick glance at the bulletin board outside the classroom, then went inside.<p>

Morris was in his seat, studying as usual. A girl with pink hair was in the chair behind him.

Ethan took a second look at the girl. Her hair wasn't pink; it was purple. He opened his mouth to say something, when the girl suddenly got up out of her seat and rushed outside.

_Weird..._ Ethan thought.

"Hey, Morris," Ethan said. "You almost done here? Ben wants you to help look around for Ashley."

"Sure, I can wrap things up here," Morris said. He stopped writing and closed his notebook. Then he started putting his things into his backpack.

"Listen...who was that girl just now?" Ethan asked.

"Kori?" Morris asked. "She's one of our classmates. Don't you know her?"

"I...I'm not sure," Ethan said. He didn't remember Kori, but even if Ethan was currently jumping between universes, it was unlikely that Kori suddenly popped into existence. More than likely, she was a student that Ethan hadn't taken notice of before.

"I'm done," Morris said, standing up and putting his backpack on. "What do you want me to do?"

Ethan and Morris left the classroom. Ethan explained to Morris that Ben wanted him to search the inside of the school. Morris nodded, then went in the other direction. Ethan turned to leave, too, when a name jumped out at him from the bulletin board.

_Kori._

Ethan read the note on the board.

_I have the envelope that fell out of the locker. –Kori_

It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. Kori must have been the purple-haired girl who bumped into Ashley at the lockers, causing Ashley to drop the envelope. Apparently, Kori went back to pick up the envelope.

Kori's contact info was on the note. Ethan called her phone number.

"Hello, is this Kori?" Ethan asked. "I'm..."

"Ethan, right?" the girl asked. "I recognize your voice."

Ethan raised his eyebrows in surprise. He didn't remember Kori, but apparently she knew him quite well in this reality.

"Yeah, I missed you as you left the classroom just now," Ethan said. "Can we talk for a moment? I'm by the bulletin board."

"I'll be there," Kori said. She hung up the phone and showed up in person, in under twenty seconds.

"Hi, Ethan," she said. "What's up?"

Ethan could tell that Kori knew him somewhat well. The Ethan from this reality must have been quite popular with the ladies. It made Ethan slightly jealous.

"It's about two days ago," Ethan said. "You know, around 3:00. I heard you were running down the hallway and bumped into a girl at her locker."

"That's right," Kori said. "Not on purpose, though. I had a paper due at three, and I was running to get it turned in before the deadline. I went back a minute later to apologize to the girl, but she was gone."

"And there was an envelope, right?" Ethan asked.

"Yeah, an envelope was on the ground, so I picked it up," Kori said. "I think I made the girl drop it when I bumped into her earlier, so I put a notice about it on the bulletin board. Why, do you know the girl or something?"

"Don't you?" Ethan asked.

Kori shook her head.

"The girl who dropped the envelope is Ashley Threet," Ethan said.

"The freshmen who went missing?" Kori gasped. "That was _her?_"

"I'm afraid so," Ethan nodded. "In fact, you're probably the last person to have seen her before she went missing."

"Oh, wow," Kori said. "I had no idea."

"I'm trying to figure out why she disappeared," Ethan said. "The envelope might have something to do with it. What was inside?"

"Money," Kori said. "About sixty dollars."

Ethan was impressed. He didn't know Ashley had that kind of money.

"Can I have it?" Ethan asked.

"Um, no," Kori said. "I don't think it'd be right to give you money that belongs to someone else."

"But what if it's related to her disappearance?" Ethan asked. "Maybe she was using the money to pay off gambling debts or something."

"I don't think that's likely," Kori said. "Tell you what, though. If you can prove you know the missing girl, I'll let you have the money."

"Proof," Ethan said. "Right. I...I'll see what I can do."

"I gotta go," Kori said. "I'll be here at school if you need me, though. See you later, Ethan."

"Bye, I guess," Ethan said. That Kori girl was mysterious, even if she seemed to be on friendly terms with him.

* * *

><p>Ethan left the school. The mystery surrounding Ashley's disappearance was interesting, but it still felt like a piece of the puzzle was missing. Clearly, the envelope full of money was important, but why?<p>

"Ethaaan!" a voice called.

It was Ben. "Did you find her?" he asked.

"No," Ethan said. "She's not inside the school."

"She's not outside school, either," Ben sighed. "Looks like we'll have to search the town. You check the park and train station, okay?"

"Shouldn't we let the police handle this?" Ethan said. "I'm kind of busy..."

"A girl is missing, Ethan!" Ben said. "You need to rearrange your priorities! She could be in serious danger!"

"Yeah, but I already searched the whole school," Ethan said. "I don't have time to do any more searches. I've got some important things to do."

"You can just search the train station, then," Ben said. "Call me if you find her. If she's not there, you can stop searching for the day. Okay?"

"Fine," Ethan said. _I'll do a quick search of the station, then it's off to figure out what happened to my parents._

* * *

><p>Ethan went to the train station. Ashley wasn't there, but another girl was.<p>

_Hey, it's Emily,_ Ethan thought. _I should talk with her._

Ethan still had a flashback of Ashley and Emily, getting into a fight outside Chronos. That incident needed to be explained.

"Emily?" Ethan asked.

"Huh?" Emily asked, looking up in surprise.

"Looking for Ashley?" Ethan asked.

"Yeah, but..." Emily said. "You...how do you know my name?"

It took Ethan a second to realize what she was talking about. In this new reality, Ashley had disappeared, so Ashley and Emily never got Ethan a birthday present. That meant the Ethan of this reality was never introduced to Emily.

"You must have heard about it from Ashley, when the two of us were talking about your birthday present," Emily decided.

"That's right," Ethan said. "So, about Ashley...you last saw her at Chronos, right?"

"I..." Emily said. "That's right. We were going to get you a present, but..."

"You two got in a fight," Ethan said quietly.

"I didn't _mean_ to yell at her!" Emily said. "I was just upset when she said she couldn't find the money she lost!"

"And you pushed her over?" Ethan said.

"I...I shouldn't have done that," Emily said. "Ashley got mad, and she ran away, and I...I..."

Emily burst into the tears.

"That was when she disappeared!" Emily wailed. "It's my fault Ashley went missing!"

"Oh..." Ethan said. He grabbed Emily and hugged her. She started crying into his shoulder, and he patted her on the back.

"Calm down," he said. "It'll be okay."

"It's...it's all my fault..." Emily said. "It's my fault Ashley went missing..."

"It's okay, Emily," Ethan said. "It's all right. You didn't yell at her on purpose. You just got mad."

"I...I..." Emily hiccupped.

Ethan patted Emily on the back a few more times. "Don't worry," he said. "I'll take care of this. I'll find Ashley for you. Trust me."

Emily heaved another sob. "Thank you, Ethan," she said. "Thank you..."

Ethan knew he _would_ find Ashley. Some way or another, he would erase this new reality.

"I just need to know one more thing," Ethan said. "This fight...when did it happen?"

"It was about seven pm," Emily said.

"Perfect," Ethan said. "Thanks, Emily."

Emily leaned backwards, from Ethan's shoulder. "Thank _you_," she said. "I've been so worried for the past two days, and..."

"I told you, it's not your fault," Ethan said. "You're not to blame. You're..."

Ethan hesitated for a moment, as Emily's teary eyes looked into his.

_This world is going to disappear pretty soon..._ Ethan thought. _I might as well go for it..._

Ethan leaned forward and kissed Emily's forehead. "You're a good girl, Emily," he said. "I like you, and I'm sorry things didn't work out with the present."

"Ethan..." Emily said. She sounded shocked and gratified at the same time, if that was possible. "I...you don't know how long I...you..."

Emily practically jumped forward as she wrapped her hands around the back of Ethan's head and pressed his mouth to hers. Ethan wanted to yelp in shock, as Emily's lips hungrily attacked his.

After about five seconds, Emily pulled away. "That can be your birthday present," she said.

_Holy crap!_ Ethan thought. _That came out of nowhere!_

"Uh...wow..." Ethan said. "Thanks?"

"I've been waiting for you to notice me for a while," Emily said. "I'm glad you have."

"I'm glad I have, too," Ethan said. "Anyway, see you in school tomorrow?"

Emily nodded, and wiped away the remainders of her tears. "You bet," she said. "Thanks for being there for me."

"Any time," Ethan said. He turned around and walked away, slightly dazed.

_Emily just kissed me! _Ethan thought. _I barely know her, and she kissed me! The Ethan from this universe really __is__ a ladies' man!_

* * *

><p>Ethan had everything figured out at this point.<p>

Kori had bumped into Ashley at the school lockers, causing Ashley to lose the envelope with money inside. This later caused Ashley and Emily to get in a fight about the missing money, four hours later.

_The solution to this problem is easy enough_, Ethan thought. _I just have to open a Time Hole to two days ago, then give Ashley the money._

Ethan confirmed both of his flashbacks about Ashley: the one of her at her locker, and the one of her fight with Emily. Giving the money to either Ashley should fix things.

The problem was that Ethan didn't have the missing money. Kori did. Kori said she wouldn't give the money to Ethan, unless he could prove he knew Ashley. And that's why Ethan went to Vin's house: to get proof.

Vin was outside on the street, looking through pictures and sighing.

"Hey, Vin," Ethan said cautiously. "How's it going?"

Vin sighed. "Hi, Ethan," he said. "It's lousy. Ashley is still missing."

"I'm sure they'll find her soon," Ethan said.

"I...I was really proud of my sister, you know?" Vin said. "I never told her, but I really loved her."

"Wow..." Ethan said. This was a completely different Vin from the one who was fighting with Ashley, earlier that day.

"I was looking through these pictures of her, and..." Vin said. "Gosh, I miss her. I'd give anything to have her back again."

"Anything, eh?" Ethan said. "How about a picture?"

"What?" Vin asked.

"Can you give me a picture?" Ethan said. He pointed at one of the photographs in Vin's hand. "You know, that one of you, me and her."

"Oh," Vin said. "Sure, you can have it, I guess. You miss her too, huh?"

"Yeah," Ethan said. "But don't worry. I have a feeling she'll be back, sooner than you'd expect."

With those enigmatic words, Ethan ran back to school. He called Kori on the way and asked her to return to the bulletin board area.

* * *

><p>Kori was waiting for Ethan when he arrived.<p>

"Hi, Kori," he said. "Good to see you again!"

"You look happy," Kori noted. "What happened?"

"Uh...nothing much," Ethan said. "Nothing besides..._this!_"

He whipped out the photograph of him, Vin and Ashley, then gave it to Kori.

"Here's the proof that I know Ashley," Ethan said. "Her brother and I are best friends."

"Yeah, that's her," Kori said, looking at the picture. "I guess this means you want the money now."

"If I can," Ethan said.

Kori reached into her bag and pulled out the envelope.

"Thanks," Ethan said, taking the envelope. "Before I go, one more question."

"What?" Kori asked.

"Kori...how well do we know each other?" he asked. "We seem to be friends, but to be honest, I don't really remember you."

Kori smiled sardonically. "We're more acquaintances than friends," she said. "But then again, we're more alike than you know. A _lot _more alike."

"Huh?" Ethan asked. "What do you—?"

"The incident at the locker never happened," Kori said, a shadow suddenly appearing on her face. "At least, it never _would_ have happened, if I hadn't shown up here."

Kori walked away before Ethan could ask for more details.

_That girl is mysterious..._ Ethan thought. _Does she know about the Hollow Pen?_

* * *

><p>Ethan made his way to Chronos, the restaurant. That was where Ashley and Emily had their argument about the missing money.<p>

_Time to get started_, Ethan thought. He opened up his flashbacks and double-checked the one about Ashley and Emily's fight.

Ethan stopped for a second, when he came across the flashback of a classroom. Morris was inside, along with Kori.

Kori...

What if...what if she _did_ appear from out of nowhere? After all, Ethan knew his classmates at Kako High. There was no Kori there, as far as he could remember. Was his memory faulty, or did she magically pop into existence?

_The incident at the locker never happened_, Kori had said. _At least, it never __would__ have happened, if I hadn't shown up here._

If Kori had somehow popped into existence, it would explain why he had a flashback of her in the classroom. After all, the flashbacks were only about things which were new, things which had somehow changed.

In fact, if Kori had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, it would explain everything. Ashley didn't disappear in the normal universe. But in this universe, where Kori existed, Kori accidentally caused the envelope mix-up at Ashley's locker.

_The incident at the locker never happened_, Kori had said. _At least, it never __would__ have happened, if I hadn't shown up here._

"Gah, this changing universes thing is so confusing," Ethan said. "I am _seriously_ going to have to have a long talk with Kori now."

But first, it was time to get rid of this universe, where Ashley had disappeared. Ethan took out his Hollow Pen, which was glowing, and he opened a Time Hole to the past.

It was just like the previous Time Hole Ethan had made, except this one opened up to the flashback of Ashley and Emily fighting, two days earlier. Time had frozen on both sides of the hole. As far as Ethan could tell, he was the only thing in existence which could still move.

_Better be careful not to touch anything I shouldn't..._ Ethan thought, stretching his hand out between the two frozen girls. Someone with impure intentions could do a lot of damage with the Hollow Pen.

Ethan put the envelope of money directly into the hand of Ashley. He had to lean over very far, in order to reach her hands, because she was lying on the ground after Emily pushed her. If she had been any farther away, Ethan would have had to climb through the Time Hole to reach her.

Ethan stood back up. The envelope was in Ashley's hands now. There was no way she would be able to miss it.

_That should bring an early end to the fight... _Ethan thought as he closed the Time Hole.

* * *

><p>Reality suddenly shifted, as Ethan's actions in the past took effect. Two flashbacks went through Ethan's head, informing him of what changed in this new reality.<p>

1. Ashley and Emily, outside of Chronos. The two of them looked happy.  
>2. Ashley and Emily at school, giving Ethan his birthday present.<p>

Ethan was surprised to find himself suddenly transported back to his room. He looked up, just in time to see Sox run out the window.

"Hey!" Ethan said. He leaned out the window, trying to grab his cat.

"Hey, Ethan!" a voice said.

Ethan looked at the street below, where Vin was waving at him. Vin was looking more like his normal self now.

"What's up?" Ethan asked.

"Not much," Vin said. "Just bored is all. How about we go down to Chronos and—"

"What are you doing?" Ashley asked. "You still have to finish Mom's chores!"

"Ashley!" Ethan called. There was no doubt about it; Vin's sister was there with him. So Ethan had managed to prevent her disappearance!

"Sheesh, get off my back, will you?" Vin asked. "You're such a pain."

"What was that?" Ashley asked, grabbing Vin's ear and pulling it.

"OW!" Vin cried.

Ethan laughed. He was amused to see Ashley and Vin fighting again.

"Ethan, I promise to get you a better present next year, all right?" Ashley asked.

"All right!" Ethan said. "See you two later!"

Ethan went back in his room, then looked at his desk. The birthday present from Ashley and Emily was on top of it. Unlike before, the present was a card, not a clock.

That puzzled Ethan for a moment, until he realized that he had given them the money at 7:00 PM, when most stores were closed. Ashley and Emily must not have had enough time to go clock shopping.

_I'll gladly sacrifice a clock, in order to get Ashley back, though,_ Ethan thought, smiling. He leaned back on his bed and analyzed his situation.

_I know how the Hollow Pen works now,_ Ethan thought. _And I know how the flashbacks work, too. So all I have to do in order to save my parents is figure out when and where they died. Then, I'll open a Time Hole in that location and save them!_


	3. The Accident at the Intersection

**Author's Note: **As I said in the first chapter, if Ethan was smarter, he could have saved his parents by the end of Chapter Two. Well, now that I've reached Chapter Two of the game, guess what's going to happen...

* * *

><p>Ethan spoke with his Uncle Derek that night about his parents' disappearance. Derek didn't want to talk about it any more than he did the previous night, but Ethan managed to wear him down and get a specific month: April.<p>

_My flashback says they died in a fire,_ Ethan thought. _Uncle Derek says they disappeared in April, twelve years ago. Now I just need to connect these two pieces of information to learn exactly when this happened._

Ethan's first instinct had been to go to the library archives, because he realized it would be quicker to simply look up the information online. So he went up to his room and turned on his laptop. He was rather surprised when he saw that it was completely different from how he remembered it, and it took Ethan a few seconds to realize why.

_Right, this isn't my computer,_ Ethan realized. _This belongs to the alternate version of me—the one that's been living with Uncle Derek for twelve years._

Ethan played around a bit on the computer, and he was shocked to learn that the alternate version of himself was either a major playboy or a minor pervert. Some of the pictures in the pictures folder were scandalous, and some of the emails in the "ex-girlfriends" section were rather steamy.

_Note to self,_ Ethan thought. _Once I'm finished with this crazy "save my parents" time travel business, I need to use the Hollow Pen to improve my romantic life. Apparently, the alternate me has had at least nine girlfriends._

Ethan decided to copy this information to a flash drive, so he could keep it with him, even if he changed realities again. While this happened, he did an Internet search for "fire april [year]". The results that popped up talked about a fiery explosion at the Eterna Bar and Grill, at 8:50 PM, on April 5th.

Armed with this information, Ethan went to the site of the explosion and opened a Time Hole. He peered through it to see that it was after the fire started, but before the explosion.

That's not what caught Ethan's attention, though. There was someone moving inside the Time Hole.

"Dad?" Ethan asked.

"Ethan?" Timothy Kairos asked. "Is that you?"

"It's me!" Ethan said. "I've opened a Time Hole, from twelve years into the future!"

Timothy walked over to the Time Hole and looked at Ethan.

"We're trapped in here," Timothy said. "Your mother and I. If we can't find a way out soon...well, that's probably why you opened this Time Hole."

"Exactly," Ethan said. "I need to stop you two from dying."

"I appreciate the help," Dad said. He looked around the room. "Now that time has frozen here, I should be able to escape."

"Dad?" Ethan asked. "How come you're not frozen like everyone else?"

Dad reached into his pocket and pulled out the Hollow Pen. "Everyone who has a Hollow Pen remains unfrozen when Time Holes are opened," he said. "The same thing goes for anyone who's been pushed through a Time Hole."

"You can push someone through a Time Hole?" Ethan asked. "Isn't that, like, time travelling?"

Dad raised an eyebrow. "How long have you had the Hollow Pen, son?" he asked.

"A little over a day," Ethan said.

"Ah," Dad said. "I'll tell you more about it, once I'm safe. Do you have a hammer or something I could use to break down this locked door?"

"I...guess I could get a sledgehammer," Ethan said. "Isn't there a window or something you could go through?"

"Well, I have to save your mother, too," Dad said. "She won't be of much help, seeing as she's frozen in time. I'll have to carry her to safety."

Ethan went to get something heavy, while his father pushed some beams of wood out of the way. He wasn't sure what would happen if he touched the time-frozen fire, but he didn't want to risk finding out.

Ethan came back with a sledgehammer, in almost no time at all. (Technically speaking, it _was _no time at all.) He gave it to his father through the Time Hole, and his father left with his mother. After giving them twenty minutes to get away, Ethan closed the hole.

And that's how Ethan managed to save his parents and live happily ever after! He never met Jack or Irving, and nobody died. Ethan's only regret was that it took him longer than necessary to save his parents.

**The End**


End file.
